Polish delis are great; but Merseyside Polonia is keen to try other community groups' cuisine, and culture more widely. Photograph: Martin Godwin

Diversity can be an abstract concept for the ones who only ever talk about it but never actually engage. Gosia McKane, a founder of Merseyside Polonia, decided to put principles of diversity into action and take engagement of her charity with minorities a step further.

With this in mind, the Communities through Film Festival came to life. The project is presenting short films from different communities in Liverpool and the wider region in order to inspire dialogue between communities with regards to identity, diversity and integrity.

We all talked about different ways we can meet local communities and we concluded that the best thing to do was to invite representatives of different minorities over to Kensington Fire Station, gain knowledge about their culture and learn from them through film. All this is free of charge and open for all. And just when you think it cannot get better you soon find out that there is also food, exotic and homemade, available at the events.

First on the agenda was a screening featuring short movies about the Ahmadiya Muslim Association, with a speech from the group representative Iftikhar Khan. Honorata Mikolajew, a radio presenter and manager of the project, says:

I found more about Liverpool communities from this single event that I ever would from any other source. I think that film is a great way of initiating dialogue. The success of this event demonstrates the demand for such gatherings.

Learning in Liverpool, a city with a great and flourishing mix. Photograph: Don McPhee

In the next three months, Kensington Fire Station will again host various communities and screen short documentaries. The festival will show a film about the African community this Thursday, 21 June, the Asians on 12 July and the Jewish community on 2 August, with a 'Chicken Soup and Scouse' film closing the series. Gosia says:

Hopefully the festival will raise the cultural profile of Kensington as a diverse community of Liverpool as well as encourage people to develop more projects like this.

Merseyside Polonia, a Polish non- profit organisation, was set out only three years ago with a view to building good relationships with local communities and sharing Polish culture through engaging events. Its growing portfolio of activities, an ethos of relationship-building and charismatic leadership has proven to be an effective venture.

For more information about the series or if you would like to be part of the initiative please email Merseyside Polonia on events@merseysidepolonia.com. A couple of links in this piece are to websites in Polish but they have Google translations (or you can have a crack at the language).